# How ill-defined constituents produce well-defined nanoparticles: Effect of polymer dispersity on the uniformity of copolymeric micelles

## TL;DR

This study shows that polymer dispersity enhances the uniformity of copolymeric micelles by stabilizing their formation and reducing size fluctuations, which is analyzed through self-consistent field calculations.

## Contribution

It demonstrates how polymer length dispersity influences micelle stability and uniformity, providing insights into controlling nanoparticle properties.

## Key findings

- Polydispersity raises free energy barriers for micelle formation.
- Polydispersity reduces size fluctuations of micelles.
- Moderate dispersity leads to more uniform micelles.

## Abstract

We investigate the effect of polymer length dispersity on the properties of self-assembled micelles in solution by self-consistent field calculations. Polydispersity stabilizes micelles by raising the free energy barriers of micelle formation and dissolution. Most importantly, it significantly reduces the size fluctuations of micelles: Block copolymers of moderate polydispersity form more uniform particles than their monodisperse counterparts. We attribute this to the fact that the packing of the solvophobic monomers in the core can be optimized if the constituent polymers have different length.